Just as the weekend began, lawmakers in New York legalized same-sex marriages. Looks like the state of New York is moving into modern times! The legalization of gay marriage came just in time for New York City’s annual Gay Pride Parade, which took place on Sunday.
The parade, which is always exciting and colorful to say the least, was a particularly moving affair which appropriately had the feel of a large wedding this time around. Officials estimated that about 2 million people came out to see the 42nd parade – and many say it is the city’s most eclectic one yet.
The theme of this year’s parade was “Proud and Powerful” and that is an ideal description of this year’s festivities. New York’s gay community has been speaking out for decades against discrimination and the legalization of same-sex marriages has been on the docket for a while. Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the law late on Friday in a hugely controversial yet at the same time highly popular move.
During his campaign for office, Governor Cuomo had promised to work hard to pass same-sex marriage into law. As the governor marched through the parade, alongside the city’s mayor, Michael Bloomberg, he wore a small gay pride flag in his pocket and happily waved to onlookers holding signs thanking him.
The new law will take effect in 30 days and the city is expecting a boost in the economy. With the legalization of gay marriage, we wonder if many more people will move to New York to make their unions legal.
Jon Huser
